Color of Gray
by Titan of Saturn
Summary: The Kamiya family have been Vampire Slayers for eight decades. Karou Kamiya meets a strange vampire one night. Now, with the Vampire Kenshin, her brother Yahiko, and fighter Sanosuke, Karou must stand against a fearsome rouge manslayer.
1. Color One: Yellow

"Stop where you are, Battousai!" _What the hell? Who would know-?_

Kenshin turned towards the voice, doing his best to enforce his innocent wanderer look even when he was beyond nervous. Behind him a young woman stood regally, hands gripping a gleaming sword with sure practice and leveling it at him.

And for one, heart stopping moment, Kenshin Himura could have sworn that his beloved stood there. Tomoe's image superimposed itself over this strangers, angry and katana held out, ready to slay the evil that took the form of her husband. She lunged at him, just as she had centuries ago, and violet eyes widened at the sword point drawing nearer to his heart.

But then the moment was over, and it was just this girl who looked nothing like his long dead wife. They differed greatly in appearance, even in manner if what he had seen so far was true always. Kenshin let out a soft confused noise, turning fully to face the dark haired girl. Sharp blue eyes darted to the katana at his waist, and a surprised vampire had to restock what he knew.

Not some girl. A hunter.

"This one is sorry." Kenshin said to her. "But this one does not know what you are talking about, that he does not." Ignorance was the best policy, in his opinion. It generally worked very well.

"Don't play coy with me, Battousai. You've been running around killing with that sword of yours, claiming to have been a student of my Father's. Well, you won't get away from me. Prepare yourself!" _Ha,_ Kenshin thought, even as he watched the girl lunge at him, _so naive they are these days, announcing their attacks so._

"Ah!" Kenshin cried out, staggering to the side in surprise so that the sword thrust just barely grazed him. "This one has slain no one with his sword, that he has not!" He tried to reason with her. She swiped at him again, and this time Kenshin had to jump back. He landed on a box, which collapsed under his weight. The girl came up and pushed her sword to his throat, eyeing him suspiciously.

"I doubt the infamous Manslayer Battousai would be so clumsy. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a vampire fall like this before in my life."

"As this one said, he has not slain. Look," Kenshin offered his sword, careful to make no move to remove it from it's sheath himself. The metal at his throat convinced him enough not to make any aggressive moves. The hunter reached down wearily and removed the katana, gasping at the sight.

"I may not be an expert on Japanese weaponry," She commented dryly. "But I do know that the blade is definitely on the wrong side. In fact, this thing looks practically new."

"That will not slay anything, that it will not. This one is just a simple wanderer."

"You should be careful." The hunter admonished. "A vampire carrying a sword in these times is sure to draw suspicion. And stay out of my way." Just then, a person screamed. The hunter turned sharply towards the noise, dropped his sword, and took off running.

Kenshin let out a surprised noise, before a pale hand shot out to grab it before it hit the ground. The red-head then calmly re-sheathed his reverse-blade sword, and looked to the side after the dark-haired girl.

And smiled.

* * *

Revised version of this story. The other one started in the middle and was far too confusing. So here this is. I hope that this is better liked.

TS


	2. Color Two: Brown

_So quiet._ Karou sipped some tea and sat, relaxing herself into meditation. It had all been so stressful. After running into that strange vampire, she had gone and saved a woman about to be raped by one of the night creatures. But in her haste to go out that night and find the swordsman tarnishing her father's good name, she had not paid attention to which sword she had picked up.

A mistake. Her father must have rolled over in his grave. In her fight to save the woman she had broken the shoddy sword, and who then had she come upon than the man she was searching for.

Karou had been prepared to fight him bare handed.

But the wanderer, who called himself Kenshin, had come to her rescue, gently chiding her for such a poor choice in attack. And Karou, woozy from blood loss, had declared her resolution to defend her father's name at any cost.

And then, it was over. So fast, so simple. This strange wandering vampire had taken care of a problem that had been agonizing her for months in a single day. And Karou was grateful.

'_But Karou, my dear, letting him stay in your home? Just because he looks innocent doesn't mean he is. He is one of the night, of the Vampires, and you have invited him into your house. So dangerous.'_

She'd tried to explain it to Dr. Gensai, how she could do such a thing. But Karou had been unable to put it to words. _He's bound to me, in a way I can't comprehend. But how? And why? Why, Karou, do you feel so safe with this creature in your home? What is it about him? Why is he different?_

_It's too quiet._

Karou opened her eyes with a snap, forcing herself quickly out of meditation. This was Tokyo, there should be no silence. More to the point, this was a dojo, where was the noise of the students?

But there were no students. It was past time for her night class, and no one had shown up. Sure, she had other students, ones in classes earlier in the day, but this class was special. It was for students who knew of the things that went bump in the night, and wished to learn how to defend against them. It was a Hunter class.

But her Father's name had been cleared. Why did they not return? Karou was struck with a sudden worry that they would never come back, and be left alone to defend themselves with half truths and basic skills. Would they seek out danger and get themselves killed?

It was then that Karou realized why the silence worried her so, why she could feel the sinking of dread in her stomach and the prickling of hairs on her neck. Why the empty dojo scared her beyond the thought of students gone. There was a student that should be there, regardless.

"Yahiko!"


	3. Color Three: Silver

Karou had been to three different Vampire Houses and trolled the streets all night looking for her brother

Karou had been to three different Vampire Houses and trolled the streets all night looking for her brother. She found the boy, finally, in the fourth House she stormed. Yahiko was strung up and bleeding, but he looked otherwise unharmed. They hadn't had time to do anything resembling torture. But he'd been bitten, and inside Karou wept.

She had hoped that it would be many more years before the Hunter-in-training would experience the horror of a Vampire bite. But it was too late now for regrets.

"We're not just going to let him go, you know." One of the Vampires said, standing up. Karou looked around her with sharp eyes, counting her opponents.

"Fine, I'll make a deal with you." She said after determining that she couldn't fight them all and be able to keep Yahiko alive. There were at least three Vampires in reach of Yahiko to kill him before she could get there if she attacked.

"Karou are you nuts? You're not supposed to make deals with Vampires!" And Yahiko was apparently well enough to argue with her. She wasn't sure if that was good or bad. Ignoring him, Karou swept her pony-tail to one side and bared her neck.

"True Hunter's blood, none of that in-training stuff. One pint exactly, no more, and I _can_ tell how much you take. Then you let us both go without a fight. Deal?"

"Karou, you stupid ugly idiot!" The lead Vamp grinned.

"Deal. Let's seal it in blood." And he swooped down on her.

_One, two, three, four…_ The Vampire closest to Yahiko took several steps forward, mouth open in obvious lust. _Seven, eight, nine…_ A second Vamp took a couple of shuffling steps towards her; they had to be able to smell her blood by now. _Twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen…_ Karou suppressed a wince at the pain spreading like fire up her neck and down her shoulder. _Eighteen, nineteen, come on! Move already!_ A third Vampire shifted forward, but it wasn't the one she needed. _Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three… shit._

In one swift strike, Karou hit the pressure point on the Vampire's neck that caused his fangs to retract. In a second strike, she separated his head from his body. A flash and a throwing knife imbedded it self hilt deep in the third Vamp's chest, dropping him for a precious few minutes before he'd revive; a second one severed the rope hanging Yahiko, and that's all Karou could do because the others were on her.

But she's lost blood, and they smell it, and her skill won't be enough.

"Yahiko, run!" A figure blurred past her, and then there was a hurricane of red hair and steel and her opponents fell like flies. Karou severed another head and ran for Yahiko, who was staring at Kenshin with a kind of awe. "Get up, Yahiko, get up! Come on!" She spun and made a swift cut with her sword, slitting the Vamp's throat but not enough to sever the head (that one would get up again) and swayed.

With a chill Karou realized she was still injured, still low on blood, and a twenty-five count had been too much. Her brother was at her elbow in an instant, and Karou was grateful of that much. They needed to go. Now.


End file.
